Pope Francis has named three women to the Dicastery for Bishops, the first time that women have been appointed to the Dicastery responsible for identifying future bishops globally.
The female members are Sister Raffaella Petrini, F.S.E., Secretary General of the Governorate of the Vatican City State, Sister Yvonne Reungoat, F.M.A, former Superior General of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and Dr Maria Lia Zervino, President of the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations. The nomination of Dr Zervino also marks the first appointment ever of a laywoman to the Vatican Dicastery.
The other appointees to the dicastery are: Cardinal Anders Arborelius, OCD, Bishop of Stocholm (Sweden); Cardinal Jose F. Advincula, Archbishop of Manila (Philippines); Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, Archivist and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church; Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops; Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments; Cardinal-elect Lazzaro You Heung-sik, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Clergy; Cardinal-elect Jean-Marc Aveline, Archbishop of Marseille (France); Cardinal-elect Oscar Cantoni, Bishop of Como (Italy); Archbishop Dražen Kutleša, Archbishop of Split-Makarska (Croatia); Bishop Paul Desmond Tighe, Secretary of the former Pontifical Council for Culture; Fr Dom Donato Ogliari , OSB, Abbot of the Abbey of San Paolo fuori le Mura and Apostolic Administrator of the Territorial Abbey of Montecassino (Italy).
In February this year, in a video on his official Twitter account, the Pope asked people to pray for religious sisters and consecrated women and highlighted their service. Speaking in Spanish, he prompted nuns to fight back against sexism, especially within the Church. “I encourage all consecrated women to discern and choose what is best for their mission in the face of the world’s challenges that we’re experiencing,” Pope Francis said in the 1 February message. “I invite them to fight when, in some cases, they are treated unfairly, even within the Church; when they serve so much that they are reduced to servitude —at times, by men of the Church.”
The Pope did not provide any more context for his comments at the time, but in February 2019 aboard the papal plane returning to Rome after a two-day trip to the United Arab Emirates, he responded to a question about sexual abuse of women religious by priests. He said he was aware this was still a problem, and that it was something the Church was working to end. “Must something more be done? Yes. Do we have the will? Yes,” he said on 5 February 2019.
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